New figures have revealed that one in four people in the UK are learning some form of skill rather than being in employment.
Statistics released by the Department for Children, Schools and Families show that a tough jobs market has seen record numbers of people stay in education and bolster their skill set rather than attempt to gain a position with a company.
According to the figures, for every two people in work, there is one attempting to learn new skills.
However, Ian Brinkley, associate director of the Work Foundation think tank, told the BBC that the question remains over how the country will pay for so many people being in education instead of work.
“If it’s not the taxpayer, it will mean either firms paying or individuals paying for themselves,” he said.
His comments came after the Office for National Statistics recently released data showing that the rate of decline of the labour market has slowed down in the third quarter of 2009, although the number of available jobs in the UK continues to fall.
Author: Chris Slay
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